Could Things Ever Be Like They Were?
by laurendee
Summary: Kirsten's secret from the season finale is revealed. See where this secret takes the Cohens. Updated-Seth and Ryan find out the truth.
1. Default Chapter

DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything. This disclaimer applies to all chapters.

Here's a Sandy/Kirsten story based on what Kirsten was trying to say during her conversation with Theresa in the season finale. She never admitted what actually happened, so here is her telling Sandy the truth. Read and Review. Enjoy.

It had been bothering Kirsten all summer. Ever since she accidentally slipped and let too much information out when Sandy asked her about her advice to Theresa, she felt guilty. Up until this point Kirsten never thought she would have to tell her husband about what she happened in the early days of their relationship during those few months they spent apart from each other.

But after talking to Theresa that day at the restaurant, she started thinking about everything she had kept hidden. Talking to Theresa was the closest she ever came to verbally speaking the truth and now she felt she had to come clean with her husband. She knew that he had to be suspecting something after seeing the look on his face when she accidentally told him too quickly that she understood Theresa's predicament. Thinking about telling Sandy made Kirsten extremely irritable and frustrated. She was afraid...afraid of even saying the truth...afraid of what his reaction would be...afraid of how this would affect their marriage and also Seth and Ryan. She feared things would never be the same.

She did what she had to do, she thought to herself, trying to rationalize the situation. She had to. How was she to know that Sandy would be the one she would marry? She had only known him for about 6 months and she knew from her past 2 year relationship with Jimmy that everything could change one day and someone might all of a sudden not love you like they did the day before. And besides, it's not like Sandy took the news well when she told him she thought she was pregnant.

That was 20 years ago though. Sandy and Kirsten had now been married for 18 years and experienced a lot of highs and lows during their marriage. She reminded herself of how deeply in love they were with each other and how together they got through tough situations and how together they shared beautiful things. Sandy always said that she could tell him anything and he promised it would be okay. She tried to convince herself that Sandy would keep his promise and understand this but deep down she knew that it would change everything.

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Finally she decided that today was the day she would tell Sandy. It seemed to be a good day to tell him. After all Seth and Ryan were out since it was a Friday night and the Cohens' had a party to attend tomorrow night, so even if telling Sandy didn't go too well tonight, at least with everyone going to a party tomorrow it might lighten the blow and get their minds off of everything for at least a few hours.

She heard his car pull into the driveway. She started to tremble, getting extremely nervous.

"Hi honey," he said happily, walking into the kitchen to greet her.

"Hi. How was your day?" she asked nonchalantly. She told herself to stop making small talk and get to it. She knew the longer she waited the harder it was going to get. She had to tell him today and it had to be now. Right now.

After Sandy finished talking about his day at the office, she seriously told him to sit down on one of the kitchen chairs. He followed her order, looking at her with concern in his eyes. He knew from her jittery-ness since he walked through the door that something was up.

"You okay?" he asked.

"I have to tell you something. Its...umm...a really big thing, so prepare yourself."

"Okay..." he said as he reached out for her hand, but she pulled away and put her hands on her head, looking down.

"Kirsten...are you okay? Are the kids okay? Did anything change from the way things were this morning?" he asked. He wasn't sure what to say. His wife was acting strange and he had no idea what was going on.

"I'm okay. The kids are okay. Everything is still the same as this morning...but I just have to tell you something. It's from a long time ago," she said, starting to cry. Darn she thought to herself. She didn't want to let her emotions get in the way before she told him.

"Kirsten..." he said compassionately, "let it out. I'm here. Let it out."

His wife continued to cry harder. She knew there was no turning back now. She had to tell him but she was starting to chicken out.

"Baby come on...tell me...what's on your mind?" he said while grabbing a napkin from the napkin holder and dabbing her eyes and cheeks.

"I can't. I can't Sandy," she said through tears.

"Why not?" he asked, suddenly getting nervous again.

"Because...you are going to hate me. Our relationship is perfect and I know that once I tell you...it's not going to be that way for a long time. I just don't want to ruin our relationship. I love you Sandy, I do. Please forgive me and know that I'm more sorry than words can ever express. Please, remember that when I tell you..."

"Go ahead," he said defiantly as thoughts raced through his mind. What did she have to tell him? He feared that she cheated on him. He couldn't think of anything that would make Kirsten this emotional and apologetic.

She took a deep breath, then began, "Do you remember early in our relationship when we started taking our relationship to the next level?" Long silence. After wiping her eyes, she continued, "And that one night I told you that I thought I was pregnant." She looked at him for confirmation.

"Go on," he said rather sharply.

"Well do you remember?"

_She was studying in the living room when he came home that night. After greeting him and talking about how their days went, she decided to tell him._

"_Sandy..." she said reaching out for his hands._

"_Yeah?"_

"_Umm...how can I bring this up? Okay well I haven't gotten my period in a while."_

_Sandy laughed. It was a strange thing to bring up. "Okay...You haven't?"_

"_No. My periods are sometimes late, so it's probably nothing, but I was looking at the calendar...and...and if I go by the last time I got my period...there is a chance I might be pregnant." She knew better than that though. She didn't need a calendar. All it took was the few mornings each week that she felt sick to know that it wasn't a late period._

_At first he asked as if he hadn't heard her correctly when she said it, "Pregnant?"_

"_Yeah. Maybe."_

"_Pregnant!" he said this time more loudly as if this couldn't be happening. He let go of her hands and started pacing around the room._

"_I didn't say it was definite. I just said maybe. You don't have to get all bent out of whack about it."_

"_I don't? Do you realize how huge this is if you are pregnant? How could you be staying so calm right now?"_

"_I don't know. Maybe because I'm more mature than my boyfriend and am willing to take responsibilities for my actions. I'm going to Amy's apartment for the night. Bye."_

"_Kirsten wait! Are you going to take a test? You need to find out right away."_

"_I'll take one tomorrow," she said angrily, closing the door as she said it. To herself she thought, "I already took one."_

"I do..."

"So when I told you that, you got really freaked out. I saw the usual confident Sandy turn into a panic-stricken Sandy who I'd never seen been this shocked, surprised, and upset."

"Kirsten I already know about all of this...where is this going?" he asked impatiently, his voice rising.

"Okay I know you do but I had to start somewhere. So I saw how freaked out you were about the whole thing. I was too, but I thought I would be relieved to finally get it out in the open and tell you that I thought I was pregnant but after I told you I wasn't relieved at all. While I knew it was huge news I thought you would have been more supportive and responsible. I mean it wasn't just me who got pregnant. I needed you for that part." She got ahead of herself and realized what she said.

"You said you thought you were pregnant? Are you now telling me that it wasn't a false positive?"

"Sandy I'm sorry. I knew I couldn't tell you the truth after seeing your reaction to my thinking I was pregnant."

"You don't know what my reaction would have been because you never told me. So what did you do after you lied to me about being pregnant?

TBC...

What do you think happened?


	2. What Really Happened

DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything.

"I finished the semester and...

_Kirsten was four months pregnant by the time the semester ended. She had told Sandy she was going to take some summer classes in New York at NYU, which she did while she continued along in her pregnancy._

_Sandy found it odd that Kirsten avoided a lot of his phone calls and thought that maybe she wanted some space from their relationship. After all, she did decide pretty unexpectedly to take summer classes in New York and now she was avoiding his calls so maybe this was her gradual way to avoid him and their relationship. He decided to act on his inclinations and told her that maybe they needed to spend some time apart for a while and see where things go after the fall semester begins._

_Kirsten hated the fact that she had to go along with Sandy's plan. She knew that he only wanted to break up because of her acting strange these past few months. After their break up, Kirsten cried even more than she already was every day and felt even more lonely. She wished she had told him the truth. She didn't give up on trying as she spent countless days picking up the phone to tell him she was pregnant only to hang up before she heard the first ring. She missed him terribly and longed for his love, support, and comfort, especially at one of the most emotional times in her life. She was, after all, pregnant with his baby and going to doctor appointments alone. Sandy was supposed to be there with her, seeing images of their child for the first time, him listening to the baby's heartbeat. But she again reminded herself that Sandy couldn't be there since she couldn't get up enough courage to tell him._

_She stayed in New York to have the baby in fear that she would see him on campus had she gone home. After contemplating day in and day out, she decided that the best thing for her baby was to give the baby up for adoption because Kirsten was a young, single mother who only had a part time job, some college credits, and a life that was currently in disarray. It wasn't like her family, nor the father of her baby, even knew she was pregnant. So because of these reasons, she decided to give the baby up for adoption. She wanted her baby to have a good, stable life, and Kirsten just felt she wasn't emotionally and financially able to do that for her baby._

_Kirsten gave birth on October 19, 1984 to a healthy, baby girl, whom she named Kassandra after Sandy and herself. The K was for Kirsten and the Sandra was for Sandy since she imagined that their little girl would be called Sandy as a nickname. For Kirsten the pain of birth was nothing compared to giving her little girl away. Kirsten cried when she held her baby in her arms for the first time. She was a beautiful baby. She recognized Sandy's facial features in Kassandra immediately. The close resemblance caused Kirsten to cry even harder. She desperately wanted to tell Sandy about the baby. For a few minutes, she fantasized about what it would've been like had Sandy known she was pregnant and had been here for the delivery. She smiled to herself. Sandy would have been so proud of her had he known about her giving birth to their baby. She thought about how happy Sandy would be to hold their baby for the first time. And then they would go home to the newly decorated nursery that they started working on once they found out Kirsten was pregnant. But this wasn't how it was. This was how she wanted it to be. She tried to convince herself that Sandy's reaction to her telling him she thought she was pregnant was the reason why she never did tell him the truth. But to believe that would be a lie. It was her fault too. She never trusted him enough to know that he would be there for her during the pregnancy. She never gave him a chance to even be there for her so who was she to even say he wouldn't be there. These thoughts raced through her mind as she held her baby for the last time before the couple who were adopting Kassandra would come to take her to her new home. Kirsten kissed the top of Kassandra's head. "I love you, my baby, I love you, Kassandra, and I know your daddy loves you too. I'll explain everything to him one day. I promise you. It might not be today, or tomorrow, but I will one day. I love you Kassandra," she said as she cried._

_The couple who adopted Kassandra was great. They were there for Kirsten during labor and delivery and were crying when they saw Kassandra for the first time. They were overjoyed to be able to adopt Kassandra and welcomed Kirsten to their house anytime, promising to keep in contact with Kirsten._

_The next few months Kirsten cried even more than she did when she was pregnant. She dearly missed her daughter. She missed Sandy. She hated herself for not telling him. The emotions started taking full control over her. She heavily drank whenever she had a spare moment. She knew this was bad behavior but she just didn't know what to do with herself. She felt like she had no one. It wasn't like she had any activities to keep herself occupied as she had took the fall semester off to have the baby. One day at work, a co-worker told her she should see a therapist as she was always depressed and it was starting to affect her ability to relate to customers in work. Kirsten was reluctant, but after her co-worker said to her, "Do you want your baby to see you like this?", it wasn't long before Kirsten was seeing a psychiatrist. After a few sessions, she started realizing that going to the therapist was the best thing she could do for herself because at that point, she was at rock bottom and would do anything to talk to someone about her situation._

...so I went to the therapist for a few months. I didn't want to rush myself so I waited until January to come back to Berkeley...and you know the rest from there."

_She was talking about how when she got back and returned to her old job at the restaurant, she ran into Sandy by coincidence one day. One thing led to another and within a few months they were back to like they used to be. Kirsten never forgot about what she did, but as time went on, her and Sandy got more and more comfortable and intimate with one another and it got harder and harder to bring it up. Secretly, she kept in touch with Kassandra's parents and received pictures from them every now and then. _

Sandy was speechless. There were way too many things to think about at once. Where should he begin?

"I can't believe you. I can't believe you! What were you thinkin keeping something like this from me? I don't even know where to begin! I can't believe you!" He was yelling angrily as he paced back and forth. He couldn't believe what Kirsten just told him. He didn't care what he was saying and if it made sense. He couldn't even find the words to say anything. It was just too unreal.

"I'm sorry Sandy. I know this must be extremely hard to comprehend right now," she said apologetically.

"You have no idea what I feel like. Don't even try to put yourself in my place," he snapped back at her, thought not looking her in the eye. He hadn't looked her in the eye since she finished telling him the truth about the baby. He just couldn't look at her.

"I'm not. I'm just trying to make this easier, Sandy," she said apologetically. She was trying hard to remain calm throughout the whole thing.

"Trying to make this easier? You caused this whole mess by not telling me! So where's my baby at? Well she isn't really a baby any more since she's going to be 20 but she's still my baby. Where is she? I want to talk to her!"

"Sandy wait! Before you start jumping ahead of things let me explain everything."

"There's more?"

"I don't know if Kassandra knows about us."

"What?"

"I don't know if Kassandra knows that we're her real parents. I told the couple that adopted her to keep it a secret."

"Why would you do that? Actually no, I know the answer...you were an idiot! I can't think of why you wouldn't want her to know about us? Especially me...keeping her from me? I've never seen my own daughter!"

"I don't know Sandy. I'm sorry. I was confused back then. I was trying to do what was best."

"Well it is too bad that you didn't do what was best for our baby."

"What are you saying?"

"You should have told me that you were pregnant right from the start. From there we would have found a bigger apartment for the baby. We could have created and decorated a nursery and started preparing for the baby. Then we could have both experienced the birth of the baby and began our life as a family together. But obviously you didn't want that." He started to cry as he said this. It was painful for him to think about how much he would have enjoyed the pregnancy, birth, and raising their baby.

"Sandy it wasn't like you were overjoyed when I told you that I thought I was pregnant. You freaked out. Don't act like you were all cool and calm about it."

He was still pacing around thinking. Kirsten did have a point. He was scared when she told him that she thought she was pregnant. It was just that now, 20 years later, he had experienced Kirsten being pregnant with Seth and enjoyed every minute of it. Back then he had nothing to compare pregnancy to. Now he had a son and knew what a joy having a baby was and he was angry that he didn't get to experience the whole pregnancy with Kirsten back then. Frustrated, angry, and upset, he said, "I've got to get out of here."

"Where are you going?" Kirsten said panicking.

"On the beach. We're not done talking but I just can't continue this conversation right now."

With that, he slammed the front door shut and headed toward the beach. He needed some time to think about everything.

Kirsten sat back down at the kitchen table and put her head on the table in her arms and cried.

TBC...

Will Sandy get to meet his daughter? Will Kirsten get to see her daughter for the first time since giving birth to her? What about Seth, will he find out that he has a biological sister? How will him and Ryan react to the news if they find out? All of these issues to be brought up!


	3. Awkwardness

DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything.

It was already past midnight and Sandy still hadn't returned home. Kirsten was worried. She prayed that when he said he needed to "get out of here" he didn't mean that he was going to really take off for good. She decided to call his cell phone. No answer. She contemplated whether or not she should head out to the beach to look for him. 2 seconds later she was walking out the door, hoping that the boys wouldn't wake up to find her note on the kitchen table saying that Sandy and her went out for a bit. Kirsten knew Sandy was angry with her but she had to find him and talk to him some more. She couldn't let him slip away.

Sandy was sitting on the sand. Had it not been dark out, Sandy would have been surfing, his favorite thing to do aside from being with Kirsten. He couldn't believe how much his life had changed within the last few hours. Now, all of a sudden he was a father of 2 kids. He thought about Kassandra. He hoped she grew up in a good environment. Of course Sandy thought that he and Kirsten could have raised their child best, but he prayed that this couple provided Kassandra with everything she needed emotionally and financially. Sandy then thought about Seth and how he has an older sister. All this time Seth struggled to fit into Newport and needed a friend, little did he know he had an older sister who could have been there with him. Sandy picked up a seashell and threw it into the water. He was angry with Kirsten for not telling him. Had she told him the truth right from the start things would have been better for everyone...himself...Kirsten...Kassandra...Seth. Suddenly Sandy heard footsteps coming toward him, feet shuffling in the sand. He turned around to find Kirsten walking towards him.

She wasn't sure what to say when she found him, but she just knew she had to stop him from walking away. Once she found him she hurried onto the beach, still unsure of what to say.

Sandy turned back toward the ocean, saying, "How did you find me?"

"18 years isn't for nothing. You think I don't know your exact favorite place to be on the beach?" she asked looking right at him.

"I don't know." It was hard to tell what Sandy's emotions were at the moment.

"Sandy please...please don't walk away," she said almost too forcefully for how calm Sandy was.

"Walk away?"

"Yeah. Please don't walk away from this marriage. I know I caused havoc but please...you really scared me tonight when you left."

"Who said I was walking away?"

Startled, Kirsten reminded herself that Sandy never said he was leaving for good. A bit embarrassed, she replied, "Well I just got scared. I thought when you said you needed to leave you meant permanently."

"You think I'd leave without taking my surf board?" he asked jokingly, but still looking at the water.

"No, you're right, that's true." Kirsten kneeled down next to him hoping to get him to look at her. "Sandy whatever you want to ask me or say to me, I'm not going to rush you, but when you want to talk about everything I'm here."

Turning his head slightly, he noticed that Kirsten had a photo album with her. "What's that?"

"Oh, it's just some stuff I thought you might want to look at. It's everything I have." She handed him the album.

"Thanks. I'll look at it later." He knew that once he looked at the pictures of Kassandra he would start crying again. Right now he just wanted to sit and figure everything out in his head.

Kirsten got up, seeing that Sandy probably wanted to be alone right now. "Well, I'll leave you alone. But remember, when you want to talk, let me know." She headed back up the beach after he simply replied "Okay".

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Surprisingly, all of this had gone on without Seth or Ryan knowing. When Sandy walked in at about 2am the next morning, he found Kirsten sleeping on the couch. She had decided to sleep on the living room couch because she wasn't sure that Sandy wanted to be close to her that night. Sandy slept in the guest's bedroom that night. It felt too weird to sleep in their bedroom alone. He looked at the photo album of Kassandra that had some letters from the couple. Seeing his beautiful daughter made him determined to meet her in person.

The cell phone alarm woke Kirsten up at 7am. It was earlier than the usual time her and Sandy got up, which was after some morning love and cuddling. But today she wanted to wake up before the boys got up in fear that they would suspect something was up if Kirsten was sleeping on the couch.

Kirsten headed toward her and Sandy's bedroom, unsure whether or not to go in if Sandy was still in there. When she got to the top of the stairs, she noticed that the bedroom doors were open and the bed was made. So tired not even thinking that maybe Sandy was in the bathroom, she walked in and got some clothes out of the closet, only to turn around and walk right into Sandy, who was bare-chested with just a towel around him.

"Hi, sorry," she said quickly, "you know, if I would have known that you make the bed this good, we would have never needed Rosa."

"We still need her...I didn't make the bed."

"Oh."

"I didn't sleep in here. I slept in the guest's bedroom."

"Oh." She didn't know what to say. Was it good or bad that Sandy didn't sleep in their bedroom? He could ask the same for her, she thought. She headed into the bathroom.

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Kirsten walked into a filled kitchen. To her surprise, Sandy seemed in a good mood and was conversing with Seth and Ryan.

"Morning, mom," Seth said.

"Good morning, Kirsten," Ryan said.

"Morning boys," she said trying to be herself. She had no idea how to speak to Sandy in front of the boys. She went to grab a bagel to try to hide her uncomfortable-ness.

"Oh thank you so much for not making me start my morning by seeing you two kiss each other like crazy, like usual. Right Ryan, isn't this nice for a change?"

"Yeah, sure," Ryan replied, never to admit to Seth that he didn't mind the Cohens' early morning kissing that he and Seth were witnesses to everyday.

"Son you spoke too soon," Sandy said as he went over to Kirsten. She looked up surprised, and he hesitantly moved toward her and gave her a kiss on the lips. When their lips parted, he kissed her again, moving his tongue to encourage her to kiss him back. She did, but a bit awkwardly.

During this put-on kissing scene, Seth replied, "Actually, I don't think I spoke to soon because Ryan and I are getting out of here before this goes too far. Come on Ryan!"

When the boys left, Sandy and Kirsten immediately pulled apart. Kirsten didn't know what to say or do. She just stood there.

"The tongue meant kiss me. Don't let the boys think something is up."

"Okay. I wasn't expecting that, but, okay."

"You know I want to tell Seth and Ryan, but I'm just not ready to right now."

"Okay." Kirsten didn't want to start the day off on a bad note so she stayed quiet.

"After look at the photo album, I was thinking...I want to meet Kassandra. I have to. I have to tell her that I'm really a good person and that I'm here for her now."

"She might not know about us."

"I want her to. Why shouldn't she?"

Meanwhile, Seth and Ryan, who had been in the pool house, were walking through the open doors into the kitchen.

"Because don't you think that it will put an idea in her head like...why did they give me up?" Kirsten snapped, starting to cry again.

Seth turned to Ryan, confused since his parents were just madly in love a few minutes ago. When they got to the tv room, Seth said, "Woah, I'm glad we are heading out because that fight doesn't sound too nice."

Back in the kitchen, Sandy was saying, "If you tell her the truth...and not lie like you did to me...I'm sure she will understand."

"Sandy you don't know that. She could end up worse knowing about us then she is not knowing about us. I don't want to make things harder for her."

"Well I can't not meet her. I have to tell her I'm her real father."

Seth turned to Ryan, saying, "What? Did you hear that, man?"

"Yeah, I did. Sounds really serious. You have a sister?"

"Not to my recollection!"

"Really? Um...okay...well I'm not really sure. Maybe they are talking about someone else," Ryan replied, hoping he didn't put things into perspective for Seth, who was confused.

"Yeah, umm, they better be because that would just be outrageous!" Seth said much louder than he intended to say it.

Hearing Seth's voice, Sandy and Kirsten ran into the tv room.

"Yeah, so, what's this I hear about dad being someone's real father? He's my real father. Ryan can tell you that. He even says we look alike. I'm your only kid, right dad?"

"Seth...Ryan...sit down...we have to talk..." Sandy said, unsure of what he would even say next. Kirsten sat down nervously next to Sandy, she wasn't sure how they were going to bring this up or what to say.

TBC...

What do you think? Let me know.


	4. The Truth Hurts

DISCLAIMER: Don't own.

Both boys were sitting on the couch paying close attention to Sandy and Kirsten. Sandy was standing up and pacing back and forth like he always did when he was mad. Kirsten was sitting in the chair all curled up, looking at Sandy. Neither of them had expected the boys to hear them arguing, nor did they plan on telling the boys so soon. There was silence for a few minutes until Sandy broke it by saying, "Many years ago, 20 to be exact, your mother had-"

"-Sandy stop. Don't act like it was just me. You're acting like I did this alone!" Kirsten butted in.

"Well didn't you?"

"Not everything. Don't come off blaming me for this because it wasn't my fault." She was referring to the fact that it takes two people to make a baby.

"So it was all my fault?"

"Are you two going to tell us what's going on?" Seth interrupted.

"Yes!" They both answered in unison.

"Let me tell them," Kirsten instructed. Sandy was annoyed, but silent. He continued to pace and shook his head. Never did he expect to have to tell his sons about this now, right after he found out. He was just getting used to it and now here he was telling his sons without even a plan of how to say it. He wasn't sure how Seth would react. He prayed that it wouldn't cause Seth to want to runaway again.

"Okay now I want you to just hear me out. I have no idea what your reaction will be, but please, hear me out. Try to see where I'm coming from."

"Alright," Seth agreed. Ryan just nodded.

"20 years ago I found out I was pregnant...with your father's baby...I tried to tell your father but he freaked out when I even mentioned the idea that I might be pregnant."

"That is not true Kirsten!" Sandy snapped. "Let me finish this story up for you boys. So your mother never told me she was pregnant, she just said she thought she was. Then she took off and went to New York City for over half a year and had the baby. Then she gave your sister up for adoption." He blurted it out so fast he wasn't even sure how much he revealed.

While Sandy said this Kirsten was shaking her head in her hands. She was crying but didn't want the boys to see. This is not how she wanted to tell the boys. She felt that Sandy made it look like the blame only fell on her, and more importantly she was afraid of how it would affect Seth.

"What?" Seth asked. "Repeata, por favor. I don't think I heard you quite clearly."

"Seth you have a biological sister. She's turns 20 this month," Sandy said a little calmer.

"Hey Ryan, would you please pinch my cheek right now because I'm pretty sure I just heard my dad say that I have a sister! A sister!"

"I'm not going to pinch you Seth, but you aren't dreaming. That's what he said."

"I can't believe this! Why didn't you tell me?" Seth said aggravated and looking for answers.

"Son I'm wondering the same thing. Your mother just told me yesterday!"

"She did?"

"Oh Sandy how could you!" Kirsten yelled as tears rolled down her cheeks.

"What, tell our son the truth? You should have never kept that from us Kirsten."

"Sandy this is between me and you. You don't need to tie the boys into this mess."

"How are they not in this mess? That's Seth's sister!"

"I know that but you don't need to start bringing up personal information about this that's just between the two of us."

"So you wanted to hide the fact that you waited 20 years to tell me? Kirsten don't put the guilt on anyone but yourself. You waited to until now to tell me."

"So what are you going to announce next? The date I conceived Kassandra?" Kirsten knew she was changing the subject but was too embarrassed and overridden with guilt to continue to let Sandy go on about what happened.

"Okay I think I've heard enough. This is getting way too disgusting for me. Come on Ryan let's go and let these two fight this one out." Seth said standing up. Ryan stood up and followed Seth to the corner of the room as Sandy said, "We're not done talking yet, boys."

Seth turned back around after realizing the name he just heard and said confused, "Who is Kassandra?"

"Your sister," Sandy replied and said again, "Seth, Ryan, sit down, we're not done talking yet."

"Well could we end it...soon...this looks like it's between you and mom. Not us."

"Seth it has everything to do with you. You have a sister. Do you want to see a picture of her?"

"Okay, I guess."

"Ryan, want to see Kassandra?"

"Oh no, well I mean yes, but not now. You two look at the picture by yourselves and have some alone time."

"Okay, come on Seth, it's in the kitchen." Sandy and Seth walked into the kitchen to look at the picture.

Ryan was feeling awkward ever since Sandy told them to sit down. He took this break in the conversation as a cue to leave, especially since he was sitting with a weeping Kirsten. "Umm I think I'm going to go to Marissa's house now. Her and Summer are expecting us and this is...uh...personal family business...so I'm going to go now."

"Ryan wait," Kirsten pleaded loudly, "don't leave. Please, I need you here," she said a little quieter.

"Oh...umm...are you sure? I don't want to get in the way?"

"No Ryan, you're not in the way. You are part of the family. You didn't say anything about the big news so I'll take that as a good sign that you aren't as angry with me as the rest of them are. I could use some support right now."

"Oh no, I'm not angry with you, why would I be? I feel bad for you...that's all."

"Thanks."

"Are you okay?" He wasn't sure how to console Kirsten but she seemed to be more calm after he started talking to her so he continued.

"Not really. I don't think this family will ever be the same and it's my fault. I feel terrible. Could you do me a favor?"

"Sure."

"Keep an eye on Seth for me. He seems okay with the news, but I don't want him getting any ideas of running away again."

"Okay."

"Thanks." Kirsten got up and went over to Ryan and hugged him. Ryan hugged her back.

Meanwhile, Seth was looking at the picture of Kassandra.

"Wow, she looks a lot like mom."

"Yeah," Sandy replied, trying to hide his smile. As much as he was angry at Kirsten right now he couldn't help the fact that he loved that their daughter looked so much like her.

"But, looking closely, it looks like she has your blue eyes. Look at that dad, now all of your looks have come through in your kids. You always said that I had all your looks except for eye color. Now your daughter has the eye color."

"You're right. Seth are you okay? I mean you must be in a state of confusion right now."

"Yeah, it is a bit weird. I mean a sister? A sister? Come on who would have thought that after 17 years of being an only child that I'd suddenly have a sibling!"

"I know, I know. Do you want to meet her?"

"Umm..."

"I don't want to rush you. Take as much time as you need to think about everything. It's just that I'm going to go see her for the first time and when I do I'd like to have you there. It's going to be overwhelming."

"Go with mom."

"I'm not going to tell her I'm going."

"You're not?"

"No. If she can keep secrets I can, too."

"Dad, I think we've all been through enough today. Don't start more trouble."

Ignoring Seth, Sandy said, "So you let me know if you want to come. I'll let you know when I'm going. It's going to be soon."

TBC

Like it? I tried to put a different take on the secret Kirsten mentions in the season finale. Hope you are enjoying it. Let me know by leaving a review.


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